Looking to spend minimal for a rig that'll carry me through the next 3-4 years, for 1.5k this rig looks like it'll do but I'm not sure about alternative options. Thoughts?: Intel Coreâ„¢ i7-3770K Processor, 3.50GHz w/ 8MB Cache $339.99 http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX38982 Asus P8Z77-V LX w/ Dual DDR3, 7.1 Audio, Gigabit Lan, CrossFireX $134.99 http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX38590 RipjawsX Series 8GB PC3-12800 Dual Channel DDR3 Kit (2 x 4GB) $39.99 http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX33234 Asus GTX660 Ti DirectCU II OC Edition, Geforce GTX 660 Ti, 2GB, PCI-E w/ Dual DVI, HDMI, DisplayPort $299.99 http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX41389 Zalman Z11 Plus ATX Mid Tower Case $84.99 http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX38172 Zalman CNPS5X Performa CPU Cooler $19.99 http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX37543 Asus DRW-24B1ST 24x DVD-RW Drive, SATA, Black, OEM $19.99 http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX27707 Corsair Builder Series CX750 750W Power Supply $89.99 http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX41211 Crucial M4 2.5in SATA III Solid State Drive, 128GB 114.99 http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX35603 Final Price(without TAX): $1,129.99
^^^^ What Doxy and Sog said. Plus also upgrade it to 2x 8GB sticks of RAM. And change to a Cooler Master Hyper 212 (either plus or EVO, EVO is a bit better). Do you have to buy from that site? Or would Newegg work? Cause there are not many good power supply offerings on that site. You can get a much better built and efficient Rosewill PSU for cheaper on newegg. If you like the look of the tower then keep it, otherwise a cheaper one would save you money and wouldnt be any worse build quality. And lastly, do you have an actual hard drive too? Cause 128GB only wont get you very far these days
the 3770k is pretty boss, i like mine i would def at least get 1x8gb if not 2x8gb, also he might be ok with the 660 TI, i mean it has the same # of cuda cores, the same clocks, and the same amount of VRAM as my 670 but $100 cheaper, so if its a budgetish build youre probably ok. definitely go with at least a 240gb SSD if you only plan to run 1 drive, otherwise if you have a NAS or a spare around that might be ok fi you only run a few games on it.
The 660Ti has one of its tessellation engines cut out, plus 8 less render pipelines, and castrated memory bandwidth.
670 out preforms a 660Ti. Grab the 3570k if all you are planning on doing with your rig is gaming, save 100$, grab a Hyper 212 or EVO like Enigma said (I don't like Zalman products, the 212 is a great budget cooler - I had one on my x58 rig) and upgrade to a 670 GFX and you are set for a while.
well yeah thats why its $100 (at least, usually) more than a 660TI, but if its a budget build then its an easy way to save $100 if he needs to. Dont get me wrong i have a 670, but i also have 16gb of ram, a 3770k, and a 240gb SSD. There have been some benchmarks where some of the superclocked 660TI's that have been OC'ed bench as well as a stock 670. (source http://www.fudzilla.com/home/item/2...-gtx-660-ti-superclocked-2gb-reviewed?start=8). even before overclocking it, its a difference of maybe 10FPS, and OC narrows the gap further. Granted it sure as hell cant keep up with me and Enigma's OC'ed 670's, and long term the 670 is probably a little more future proof than the 660. again im not advocating getting the 660TI, im just saying that if you are low on cash then it might be an ok way to go... i mean... bigger is better, get a 690.....
i7 is not needed for a gaming build the i5 will be more than enough ... Bishop and I have very similar machines but he squeaks out a bit better with the i7 but when it comes to gaming it wont make much of a difference like they all have said upgrade the GPU with the savings or just go buy a couple 24 packs!!!